Alexander said the superintendent is presenting “hypothetical” concerns as being real problems.

Asked if any of the issues raised in the 95-page document presented to the board on Dec. 3 concerned him, Alexander said he had not yet read the entire presentation.

Uh, Rick? Just because you don't know about them doesn't make them hypothetical. It makes you irresponsible.

He's had, what, 50+ days to read 100 pages? I was reading that much every night for a bit there.... and the Sand Ridge report is much, much easier than Habermas, though they both made me want to cry.

Rick gets all blue-collar on us:

Robinson told PIE leaders that he does not believe they are maintaining written policies required by state and federal laws. Asked which ones, he said it was PIE's responsibility to know what laws they need to follow.

“It bothered me that statement was even made,” Alexander said. “PIE is the subcontractor to the district. Just like on a construction site, the contractor is liable for the subs. To stay out of trouble you want to make sure the subcontractors are aware of all of the rules.”

“It's not the same kind of contract,” Robinson said. “It's between two separate entities. I don't know why they would want us doing that. They've always wanted to stay at arm's length.”

I get that Mr. Alexander was (is?) in construction, so that's where he's going to draw his analogy. But his analogy bombs here: The implication he makes is clearly that the LCSD - the "contractor" - is responsible for the behavior of the charter school - the "subcontractor."

That might be true, to an extent. Certainly the LCSD is liable to suffer along with the PIE schools if the DoE comes down hard. But Rick also implies that following the law is not the responsibility of PIE, and I have a huge problem with that. Parents with children in PIE schools should too.

Alexander, incidentally, also spends a lot of time and energy keeping the LCSD away from PIE's records and internal processes - which, if Alexander is to be believed, the LCSD somehow doesn't need access to in order to ensure (remember, it's the LCSD's responsibility) that PIE is following the law.

He's trying to have his cake and eat it too: All the money, none of the responsibility and none of the blame.

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comments:

Anonymous
said...

Seriously? this Jackass (parden my ad-hominem attack) Rick Alexander is an absolutely piss poor representative of the folks of Lebanon. I understand that the community is more conservative but the doesn't mean (and the non-sequitor) they have to elect incompetant crooks to the school board. It is overtly blatent that he is pushing an agenda that favors PIE and Sand Ridge Charter school. which in most governmental organizations would constitute a conflict of interest resulting in the individual being shitcanned. The fact that Alexander hasen't been removed for his actions is tragic and should scare the metaphorical *%$^&^#$! out of anyone who actually cares about education in Lebanon.

Dennis -- That comment about slandering others anonymously wasn't for you -- but for the first anonymous person who commented under your post. Maybe you called Rick a "Jackass" and "crook" too. If so, you also are out-of-line and over-the-top with those accusations.

Last time we checked there was more than one "Dennis" in the phone book...why don't you be a brave boy & put your first AND LAST name on each of your comments? Merely writing down a first name does not make you known to the community. We know that just signing a letter to the editor with just your first name would not make it in the newspaper...just ask yo' mama! Bottom line: You are still anonymous.

I've been thinking about the claim that I'm still too anonymous even though I use my first name. I puzzled over this for a bit, even considered posting my full name and background info in the comments.

Then I remembered that I support anonymity! Sorry, fool who thinks anonymity = cowardice!

I am also amused by hypocrisy. As another anon notes, to call someone out for being anonymous without using your real name - well, that's just silly.

In many ways, anonymity is fine - as a friend of mine once said, it should force people to listen to your words rather than react based on your perceived identity (I'm paraphrasing). Too bad it seems that many prefer to shoot the messenger.

The verdict? I'm still going to post using my real name. Plenty of folks know who I am anyway.